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The inaugural Countryside Alliance Political Awards were announced by Countryside Alliance Chief Executive Simon Hart at the Countryside Alliance Awards winners' reception on 18th March 2009.
The House of Lords played host not just to Westminster Parliamentarians but also to grassroots councillors who do so much for rural communities at local level.
The Awards recognise the political significance of rural Britain, its people and the rural way of life that so many of us strive to defend. This year's winners, picked from a high-calibre group of nominees, go to great lengths to make rural Britain a better place, and the Countryside Alliance is delighted to honour them in three categories:
  The Grassroots Award for community campaigning – Cllr Heather Kidd , South Shropshire District Council, Shropshire. This Liberal Democrat Councillor is honoured for her extensive work locally and nationally for rural housing. She has worked for the Rural Housing Commission and on all recent national reviews. She has also campaigned extensively on rural bus services, saving post offices and small rural schools.
  The Westminster Award for bringing the countryside to Parliament – Bill Wiggin , MP for Leominster, Herefordshire. Bill has a phenomenal track-record of serving the countryside through his work at Westminster. As a constituency MP and breeder of Hereford cattle, Bill has worked tirelessly on behalf of his constituents especially those who were affected by Foot and Mouth and now bovine TB. Through his work on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, his chairmanship of the All-Party Parliamentary Cider Group and his role as Shadow Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, Bill has championed the interests of our farmers and producers at the highest levels in Westminster.
  The Rural Vision Award, for the politician with the countryside’s future at heart - Lord Hanningfield . As Leader of Essex County Council, Lord Hanningfield has done much to highlight and safeguard the future of Essex’s rural communities. His support during the Foot and Mouth crisis in 2001 and subsequent work o the Year of Food and Farming, his determination that rural Essex will not be concreted over and that it will retain a Post Office network and his enthusiasm for Essex's rural communities and their futures make him a worthy winner.
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